American Center marks 70 Years of India-US 'dosti'

Marking 70 years of US - India relations, the American Center on Wednesday launched its exhibition, 'Celebrating 70 Years of US-India Relations' here.

The art exhibition, which runs through August 14, features images and photographs from the U.S. Embassy archives that document the US-Indian relationship as far as the 1950s.

The event also featured a dance performance, 'Dancing Stories from the East and West,' by Assistant Professor of Contemporary Dance at Indiana University, Nyama McCarthy-Brown, and Bharatanatyam dancer, Tanya Saxena.

"All around us, you will see inspiring images from past and present that reflect the strategic partnership and strong friendship that the United States and India have enjoyed for 70 years now," said Sarah Ziebell, the US Embassy's Regional Public Engagement Specialist, during the opening of the exhibit.

She added, "Building this exhibition was both a labor of love and a joy for the team that assembled it, and we are proud of its reflection of US-India dosti."

'Dancing Stories from the East and West' is the result of a collaborative process between Professor McCarthy-Brown, a contemporary American dancer and Tanya Saxena, an Indian classical dancer, whose work arises from different pedagogical traditions but who have found commonality in expression.

Nyama McCarthy-Brown said, "The collaboration illuminated treasured dance traditions from two very distinct cultures and wove them together harmoniously, yet without infringing upon the integrity of either form. To be sure, each form was magnified in the presentation, juxtaposed to the other. The work was a collaboration, in every sense, a true partnership of embodied culture."

In addition to their solo work, Brown and Saxena debuted cross-cultural pieces that merge their countries' distinct styles of dance.

Before the performance, the dancers spoke with attendees about their art form, explained how they developed their pieces, and showcased a movement sequence through an interactive session with the audience.

The show is broken into themes that mirror the depth and breadth of the two countries' collaboration, ranging from security and economic partnerships to the sharing of talents and culture across areas such as science, technology innovation and performing arts creations.